Heart Disease News and Research

Latest Heart Disease News and Research

Gene mapping project promises new targeted cancer therapies

Government researchers in the United States have this week launched a pilot project to find all the little genetic changes that cause cancer in the hope it will lead to a whole new world of targeted cancer therapy.

14 Dec 2005

Poor diet and little exercise makes Scottish kids fatties

Health experts say that Scottish children are among the most overweight in the world.

14 Dec 2005

Fat surrounding internal thoracic artery of humans produces a factor which can relax the artery

A team of McMaster researchers has discovered that fat tissue surrounding thoracic arteries may be beneficial in patients undergoing coronary bypass surgery.

13 Dec 2005

Chlamydia loves lipid droplets

Invasive bacterial pathogens, the Chlamydiae know us very, very well. The Chlamydiae learned to parasitize eukaryotic cells half a billion years ago by reprogramming cellular functions from within.

13 Dec 2005

Perimenopause critical for preventing heart disease and osteoporosis

Research in monkeys suggests that the perimenopause - the five to 10 years before a woman's menopause - is a critical time for preventing heart disease and osteoporosis.

13 Dec 2005

Benefits of aspirin for postmenopausal women

Aspirin can significantly reduce death rates for postmenopausal women with cardiovascular disease (CVD), researchers reported at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2005.

13 Dec 2005

Retinal imaging technology helps heart

Routine visits to an Optometrist may soon provide us with diagnosis of vision complications and screening for cardiovascular disease.

13 Dec 2005

Germany must take action against secondhand smoke

Tobacco smoke in enclosed spaces is not simply a nuisance: it is a threat to health with fatal consequences. This is the conclusion reached by the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) in its latest publication.

12 Dec 2005

SPARC promotes heart muscle formation from stem cells

The protein SPARC plays a key role in the development of heart muscle in the embryo. An Austrian Science Fund FWF project has discovered this previously unknown role of SPARC.

12 Dec 2005

Is the FDA too influenced by big pharma?

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) historically sound reputation could be in jeopardy due to it's possibly too close relationship with the major pharmaceutical companies.

12 Dec 2005

Sleep apnea increases the risk of stroke four fold

Canadians and U.S. researchers say that people who suffer from sleep apnea are at a higher risk of having a stroke than those without the condition.

7 Dec 2005

Altering the composition of fats of every-day foods

Top scientists will meet in Munich on Friday 9th December 2005, to explore whether the food industry can help in the battle against the metabolic syndrome by altering the composition of fats in every-day foods.

7 Dec 2005

Study reveals treatment and screening inequalities for patients with mental health problems

Patients with mental health problems may not be receiving the appropriate screening or treatments for illnesses including heart disease and stroke, a report from The University of Nottingham has shown.

7 Dec 2005

Short-term use of painkiller drugs does not increase the risk of heart attack

Short-term use of painkiller drugs in the same family as ibuprofen does not increase the risk of having a heart attack.

7 Dec 2005

Risedronate prevents bone loss and periodontal disease

Drugs that reverse and prevent bone loss due to osteoporosis also significantly ward off periodontal disease, according to a graduate of the Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine who reports in the current Menopause journal article, "Periodontal Assessments of Postmenopausal Women Receiving Risedronate."

7 Dec 2005

New anti-clotting treatment

Volunteers at the Jack and Linda Gill Heart Institute at the University of Kentucky were the first ever to receive a new anti-clotting therapy.

7 Dec 2005

Suddenly sugar isn't looking so sweet

University of Florida researchers have identified one possible reason for rising obesity rates, and it all starts with fructose, found in fruit, honey, table sugar and other sweeteners, and in many processed foods.

7 Dec 2005

Transport mechanisms for serotonin

Researchers at The Forsyth Institute have discovered that the transport mechanisms for serotonin - the chemical substance involved in transmitting signals between neurons, and which has a role in anxiety and mood disorders - play a key role in determining where organs are positioned in the body during embryonic development.

7 Dec 2005

Subclinical hypothyroidism associated with increased risk of congestive heart failure

A hormonal condition known as subclinical hypothyroidism is associated with an increased risk of congestive heart failure among older adults, but not with other cardiovascular events and death, according to a study in the November 28 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

7 Dec 2005

Physicians slow to prescribe newer heart drugs

An analysis of the treatment received by more than 100,000 heart patients has shown that physicians' prescription practices for drugs proven effective for treating heart disease has shown steady improvement over the past three years, cardiologists at the Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) have concluded.

7 Dec 2005